Throughout the course of this class and researching/writing the blogs I 've realized a few things. First is that technology is always subject to change. People are always looking for ways to make life easier and lessen work loads. Therefore technology can and will always become better than previous generations. Technology that we may now consider obsolete may one day become useful and widespread.
The second thing that I thought about is that GPS technology is also subject to change. I thought about the future possibilities of the what could occur. I believe that in the future there will be something of a tracking device that one can swallow like a pill and will have satellites tracking them at all times. That way if someone gets kidnapped or goes missing, the FBI can access a database and locate the individuals. I feel like that is not a far stretch from the actaul future. Also more realistically the graphics on the actual devices will improve and possibly allow an actual road image on the screen of what is in the driver's sight. There is an endless amount of possibilities. So what will the future bring? We have to wait and find out...
Friday, July 24, 2009
Thursday, July 16, 2009
From Roadmaps to Roadside Navigation
Since the beginnings of early sea travel adventurers of all sorts would draw up maps to try and visualize how the world looked. Map-makers or cartographers as they were sometimes called would make pictorial representations of the world drawn onto a page and make them drawn to some kind of scale. From the ancient times the map was drawn onto parchment with some kind of brush, these limited the amount of maps that were circulating. Then with more technological advancements such as the printing press, more maps were made available to the public. Then more recently with orbital imaging from spacecrafts, very accurate designs of the world were able to be created. Other technological advancements such as the telescope and magnetic compasses also helped with the development of accurate maps.
Now GPS have taken the place of road maps. The bits of information that feed into the GPS devices through the satellites are replacing the atoms of a physical road map. With technology like this there always comes a battle between new and old. The idea of being able to read a roadmap and locate one's location of latitude and longitude is becoming a skill that is rendered obsolete. The GPS devices not only give the user a live feed of the roads in a map-like image, but also has a voice that verbalizes the directions. This can cause errors as well because just like any electronic devices there is the threat of failure. The GPS may freeze up causing the user to miss a turn, or it may not recognize one-way streets, which is what happened to me at one point in time. The GPS didn't recognize the one-way street and asked me to turn left when the street was running right. Passing that street I thought the GPS would now redirect me with another route (which it usually does when a direction is missed), but rather it took me in a circle back to the point at which I could not turn left again. Seeing this happen a second time I realized I had to look at the map on the GPS screen and find my own alternate route to the destination. So while technology does make life easier it should be a supplement to skills and not a complete substitute.
These GPS systems though have made life easier as one no longer needs multiple road maps of cities when traveling, but rather one device with a satellite connection. That is even better yet when doing traveling by foot, one does not need to fuss with maps that take 30 creases in order to fold completely and shove into the fanny pack. This is a technology that has taken the place of conventional maps and improved upon its concept tenfold. No longer are compasses needed to assist with map reading, because the GPS has built-in magnetic trackers as well. Furthermore, this is a technology with the capability to continue growing into an even bigger market.
Now GPS have taken the place of road maps. The bits of information that feed into the GPS devices through the satellites are replacing the atoms of a physical road map. With technology like this there always comes a battle between new and old. The idea of being able to read a roadmap and locate one's location of latitude and longitude is becoming a skill that is rendered obsolete. The GPS devices not only give the user a live feed of the roads in a map-like image, but also has a voice that verbalizes the directions. This can cause errors as well because just like any electronic devices there is the threat of failure. The GPS may freeze up causing the user to miss a turn, or it may not recognize one-way streets, which is what happened to me at one point in time. The GPS didn't recognize the one-way street and asked me to turn left when the street was running right. Passing that street I thought the GPS would now redirect me with another route (which it usually does when a direction is missed), but rather it took me in a circle back to the point at which I could not turn left again. Seeing this happen a second time I realized I had to look at the map on the GPS screen and find my own alternate route to the destination. So while technology does make life easier it should be a supplement to skills and not a complete substitute.
These GPS systems though have made life easier as one no longer needs multiple road maps of cities when traveling, but rather one device with a satellite connection. That is even better yet when doing traveling by foot, one does not need to fuss with maps that take 30 creases in order to fold completely and shove into the fanny pack. This is a technology that has taken the place of conventional maps and improved upon its concept tenfold. No longer are compasses needed to assist with map reading, because the GPS has built-in magnetic trackers as well. Furthermore, this is a technology with the capability to continue growing into an even bigger market.
Friday, July 10, 2009
GPS Marketing Brands
In the present day the GPS and Navigation systems have come to be marketed under a number of popular brands on a global level. Currently five of the top selling brands are:
1) Garmin- This company was started out of Kansas in 1989 and is a provider of portable units for personal, aviation, and marine use. As well as these, Garmin also markets fitness products and wireless apps for mobile use.
2) Magellan- This company based out of California is credited with the first GPS available for public use in 1989. This is also the first GPS that responded to voice commands. It continues to sell well to this day and its devices are standard place in Hertz rental cars.
3) TomTom- This company which was founded in Amsterdam in 1991 is now a global corportation. The devices from this comapny are noted by consumer reports as having some of the easiest control options, but do have more advanced options as well. The devices also have the option of using celebrity voices on their systems.
4) Mio- This company is not as dominant as its competitors but does offer a ful lspectrum of models. Also Mio is credited with developing the first PDA with GPS capabilities back in 2003.
5) Navigon- This is a relatively new company who only recently brought out their own line of devices after working behind a number of different companies. The company is growing though as it continues to develop new features for their devices, one of which is the "reality view". This feature gives users the ability to see upcoming developments that will popup in the future.
All the new developments in the GPS industry are what have allowed multiple developers to arrive on the market. New companies have sprung up with the sole idea of GPS development in mind, as well as other electronics based companies moving into the GPS industry. Now with GPS not being solely vehicle-based, companies are developing mobile apps for devices such as the Blackberry and I-phone. The technological advances in the past decade have made GPS and navigation devices more accesible to the public, just as personal computer revolutionized the business and home places in the 80s and 90s. This is a growing industry and who knows what kind of navigation advances will be around in the years to follow.
1) Garmin- This company was started out of Kansas in 1989 and is a provider of portable units for personal, aviation, and marine use. As well as these, Garmin also markets fitness products and wireless apps for mobile use.
2) Magellan- This company based out of California is credited with the first GPS available for public use in 1989. This is also the first GPS that responded to voice commands. It continues to sell well to this day and its devices are standard place in Hertz rental cars.
3) TomTom- This company which was founded in Amsterdam in 1991 is now a global corportation. The devices from this comapny are noted by consumer reports as having some of the easiest control options, but do have more advanced options as well. The devices also have the option of using celebrity voices on their systems.
4) Mio- This company is not as dominant as its competitors but does offer a ful lspectrum of models. Also Mio is credited with developing the first PDA with GPS capabilities back in 2003.
5) Navigon- This is a relatively new company who only recently brought out their own line of devices after working behind a number of different companies. The company is growing though as it continues to develop new features for their devices, one of which is the "reality view". This feature gives users the ability to see upcoming developments that will popup in the future.
All the new developments in the GPS industry are what have allowed multiple developers to arrive on the market. New companies have sprung up with the sole idea of GPS development in mind, as well as other electronics based companies moving into the GPS industry. Now with GPS not being solely vehicle-based, companies are developing mobile apps for devices such as the Blackberry and I-phone. The technological advances in the past decade have made GPS and navigation devices more accesible to the public, just as personal computer revolutionized the business and home places in the 80s and 90s. This is a growing industry and who knows what kind of navigation advances will be around in the years to follow.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
The Arrival of the GPS to civilians
In the late 1980s Ronald Reagan announced that GPS would now be available to the general public. In 1987 the Department of Defense began a system in which people would be monitoring and serving civilans using these devices. That task was taken on by the Department of Transportation and later the US Coast Guard was involved as well in serving these civil users. Then in the early 90s the Federal Aviation Administration annouced that it would be providing free GPS services to the international community for an extended period of time.
As GPS came in to the commercial sector though some restrictions came upon them. A policy called selective ability was created so that the most accurate GPS signals would be available for government/military usage. The signals broadcasted to the military would be accurate up to about 60 feet. While the singals being broadcast to civilians would be accurate up to a 100 feet. Then in 1996 the Clinton Administration contended that a greater quality of GPS signals would be made available to the public. And the system of providing civilian with lesser quality signals would end. The US also continued their insurance of providing the international community with GPS free of charge.
As GPS came in to the commercial sector though some restrictions came upon them. A policy called selective ability was created so that the most accurate GPS signals would be available for government/military usage. The signals broadcasted to the military would be accurate up to about 60 feet. While the singals being broadcast to civilians would be accurate up to a 100 feet. Then in 1996 the Clinton Administration contended that a greater quality of GPS signals would be made available to the public. And the system of providing civilian with lesser quality signals would end. The US also continued their insurance of providing the international community with GPS free of charge.
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